Ali ibn Yaqtīn in the book al-Kāfi, wherein the Abbasid despot Mahdi asked Imam Musa al-Kadhim (a.s.) regarding wine, “Is wine Harām according to the Qur’an?” (Because) people know that it is prohibited but not aware that it is Harām.” Imam Musa al-Kadhim (a.s.) replied:
“Wine is Harām according to the Divine book.”
“At what place in the Qur’an is wine shown to be Harām?”
Imam Musa al-Kadhim (a.s.) said,
“In the following statement of Allah (S.w.T.),
‘Say, my Lord has only prohibited indecencies, those of them that are apparent as well as those that are concealed.’” (Surah al-Ar’āf 7:33)
Imam (a.s.) further said,kaz
“As far as the apparent indecencies are concerned, they imply open adultery and ensigns that were hung outside the houses of prostitutes in the days of ignorance. ‘The concealed sin’ implies the sin of marrying the step mother after the death of the father as the people of the days of ignorance used to do. Allah has also ordered this act to be Harām. As far as sin is concerned, it is but “wine drinking”. At another point, Allah says,
“They ask you about intoxicants and games of chance. Say: in both of them there is a great sin and means of profit for men, and their sin is greater than their profits.” (Surah al-Baqarah 2:219)
In the above tradition Imam (a.s.) first quotes the ayat where ‘sin’ is labelled as Harām. Then he mentions that verse where wine is ordained to be a ‘sin’. Hence when it is shown that ‘sin’ is Harām and wine is sin, then wine (and all alcoholic drinks) must necessarily be Harām.